by Tyora Moody
“I’m telling you the truth. When Matt called me, I asked him where he was. It took me awhile to figure out what he was saying, but I realized he went to one of his old hangouts. I ordered Uber, found Matt, took his car keys and drove him back to his place.”
Jo’s heart sank. If Sarah was telling the truth, then Matt had an alibi. “This is awfully convenient that you’re coming forward now.”
“I didn’t know Matt couldn’t remember to tell you. I just found out after seeing my cousin’s face plastered all over the news that you’re trying to pin Laura’s death on him. He was barely able to stand and walk that night. He hadn’t been drinking in years. I went by his place this morning because I was really worried about him and wanted him to call his sponsor. He’s devastated. I’m still hoping I can get him to go to an AA meeting.”
Jo sighed. She couldn’t feel sorry for Matt. He wasn’t the victim. “What time did you pick Matt up the night of August 18th?”
“Wow, that seems so long ago now even though it’s been a few weeks. I believe it was close to midnight when the Uber driver dropped me off at Nick’s Place. That’s the name of the bar.”
Jo wrote down the name of the bar. They would need to get an arrival time for Matt. She didn’t like this at all. This was just too convenient and they had evidence connected to Matt.
Suppose Sarah had something to do with Laura’s death too?
“What time did you get Matt home?”
“I think I drove Matt back to his place around one o’clock in the morning. I had to drive around awhile because I couldn’t figure out how to get to his new apartment. When I finally remembered, it felt like it took forever to get him up those stairs to his apartment. I was so exhausted. I slept on his couch and left before he woke up. My roommate picked me up that morning so you can ask her.”
Jo shook her head. This is not looking good. Still, they only had Sarah’s word and how reliable was this young woman right now? They would soon find out.
Sarah cleared her throat. “There is something else you should know. I may have seen the guy Laura was sneaking around with again.”
Jo sat very still. “Where did you see him?”
Sarah answered with a slight tremor in her voice. “I said I may have. I’m not sure if it was him. He looked the same, but different. Different haircut, maybe. And I could be wrong.”
Jo’s nerves felt like someone had lit a match and set her on fire. “Sarah, think carefully. Where were you when you think you saw him?”
“I thought I saw him this morning when I was leaving Matt’s apartment. He was getting out of a black car. It may have been a Honda, but I’m not sure. I’m no car expert. Anyway, this guy looked directly at me like he recognized me. His eyes gave me the creeps. I kept thinking, where have I seen him before? Then it occurred to me this could be same guy I saw with Laura when we were out running a month ago. Like I said, he looked different.”
Something stirred inside of Jo causing her stomach to feel upset. Why would Sarah think she saw this man near Matt’s apartment? Did the man live there? Did he know Matt? “Did this man go towards Matt’s apartment?”
“I don’t know. Someone was honking their horn a few apartments down. I turned for like a few seconds. But when I looked back, the guy was gone. Maybe I can ask Matt about him, but that would be crazy. Laura wouldn’t have gone out with someone that Matt knew. She wasn’t that stupid.” Sarah laughed in an uncomfortable way as if the thought brought her pain. “I could be confused, you know. There are a lot of creepy guys out there.”
“Thanks for your help, Sarah.”
If this was the same guy, they need to find him fast. Jo jotted down “black Honda” on her pad. Searching for the car would be beyond looking for a needle in a haystack, but it was something. Now looking for a creepy guy who drove a black car and who may know Matt would definitely narrow the search. Jo wrote Matt’s name down and circled it.
Matt may have an alibi, but Jo felt like he was still involved in Laura’s death.
Chapter 15
Monday, August 31 at 9:05 p.m.
Jo drove down I-77, her thoughts on the Laura Finney case. Sarah coming forward with an alibi for Matt meant they had to make a statement to the media. Dropping charges against Matt would not keep Senator Finney from throwing a fit, so they still had to find a suspect. Pete and she both agreed the number one priority was to find the man Laura was seeing on the side.
Pete threw out a bunch of crazy theories, “Maybe Matt and this guy were working together? Who’s to say Sarah and Matt weren’t working together? Sarah didn’t seem to be that much of a best friend to Laura.”
Jo was deeply disturbed that Sarah thought she saw the man near Matt’s apartment. Suppose someone was trying to set Matt up? That seemed crazy to Pete, but Jo kept thinking about certain details they had found around Matt. Matt said a lot of people helped him pack up his things before moving. The rope was used to bind furniture and those rugs. Then there was the missing rug from the storage facility that was wrapped around Laura’s body. There was no evidence a crime took place in Matt’s apartment. There were too many details and some of them seemed to conveniently point to Matt as the obvious suspect.
But who would want to hurt Laura and place the blame on Matt? That meant the man Laura was with had to have known Matt.
Jo stopped thinking long enough to focus on the exit signs and noticed she needed to change into the right lane soon. She wouldn’t be able to switch her mind off from the case for long especially when she got in bed to go to sleep. She still had trouble sleeping for the past few nights. In between throwing around thoughts about the case, she wondered if she was going down the same road as her partner. Pete barely had a relationship with his kids and from the way he talked, he may not be walking down the aisle with wife number three. His girlfriend broke up with him last weekend.
Jo pulled into the garage. She hated arriving home this late, but what could she do? As she climbed out of the car and headed to the side door, she felt like she was earning an award for being the worst mother. She hadn’t seen B.J. since morning and she knew Bryan had tucked him into bed. They had agreed to have B.J. in bed by seven-thirty on school nights.
The house was silent when Jo entered. As she walked past the guest bedroom, she could hear the television through the crack in the door. She started to knock, but kept walking towards B.J.’s room. She opened the door. B.J. insisted on sleeping with a light on so they had night lights plugged in on two sides of the room. Jo walked over and looked down at her son. Her eyes watered. This case was starting to feel like the months she’d spent on the Maddock case. Since the beginning of the year, Jo liked being able to pick up her baby boy from school or from her parents’ home, get dinner ready and tuck him into bed.
She hadn’t been able to do any of those things for quite a few days now.
Jo bent and kissed her son on the forehead. “Sorry, B.J. I’ll be sure to fix you a nice breakfast in the morning.” As soon as she said it, she was reminded that Bryan fixed breakfast again this morning. He’d adjusted something with work. He seemed to keep way better hours than she did right now. Bryan was the better parent, which made it even harder on Jo’s psyche.
She walked out of B.J.’s room towards the bedroom. Jo turned on the lamp by her side of the bed and unbuttoned her shirt. She kicked off her shoes and fell back on the bed. She was bone-tired, but not so weary that the loneliness of the bedroom didn’t settle on her like it did every night.
Lord, how is my life supposed to continue like this?
Jo heard a knock at the door and lifted her head. Bryan stood in the doorway. Well, God, you answered that one fast. Judging by the grim expression on Bryan’s face, she knew this would be a difficult conversation. She prayed for the strength to handle it.
Jo lifted her body to a sitting position. “I hope you received my message.”
Bryan nodded. “I did. B.J. was really upset tonight. I had a hard time getting him to go to bed. He
wanted to wait up for you.”
That pierced Jo’s heart. “I’ve been upsetting him a lot lately.”
“We’ve both been guilty. The question is what are we going to do?”
Jo stared at Bryan. “You mean about us?”
“Yes. I know what you do as a homicide detective is really important. It’s a gritty job and someone has to do it. You’re good at your job. Last year, I saw you become obsessed with that case. You were really not here. A lot.”
Jo remained silent. She knew she’d been missing in action. Bryan didn’t say anything. Most of the time, he didn’t have to. She could see the disappointment on his face and especially on B.J.’s face.
Bryan walked into the room and sat on the bench by the closet. “Don’t take this the wrong way. I made some mistakes that I’m responsible for, but Jo we...B.J. needs you. I watched the news over the weekend. Before you even called and left your message, I saw the coverage of this Matt guy. People are questioning if he killed the senator’s daughter. I know that’s your case.”
Jo looked away from Bryan and rubbed her head. “Well, Matt Vaynor has an alibi now. This is not like the Maddock case. That was a serial killer that had to be stopped.”
“But you’re spending as much time on this case. I expected by now you wanted to talk about...you know.”
“Your affair?” Jo blew out a breath. “What’s done is done. You broke my trust.”
“Do you still want to be married, Jo? I feel like you’ve already made a decision, but you haven’t said it out loud. You’re just going on with your work as usual.”
“I haven’t decided anything. Are you saying you want a divorce? Is it what you want?”
Bryan stared at her. “Is that what you’re thinking about?”
Jo stood from the bed ignoring her tired body. “I didn’t marry you ever planning to divorce you. I would have never imagined you would cheat on me either. I think about our marriage all the time. I’m praying about what I should I do. I’ll be the first to admit, I’m also distracted right now. Maybe I want to be distracted because I’m hurt.”
Bryan stretched his arms out. “I’m so sorry I hurt you. We can’t just stay the way we are either. If you get another case, where you get obsessed again, I don’t know if I can handle that. I have a feeling this case has already crossed over that line for you.”
Jo tilted her head to the side. “What are you saying?”
“I’m saying I don’t think I can stay in a marriage where my wife disappears and gets lost in her work. I don’t want to ever put myself in that position, where I’m tempted again.”
She crossed her arms. “So, it’s my fault? Are you asking me to give up my career so you won’t be tempted to run into the arms of another woman?”
“I’m not asking you to give up anything, Jo. I’m asking you to remember you are a wife and a mother.”
Jo yelled, “How can you say that? I never forget you and B.J. Just like I never forget when I see someone dead that they’re someone’s spouse, mother or father, a brother or a sister. I always remember how I would feel if I lost someone close to me.”
Jo sank back down on the bed. “If you’re this unhappy, you do what you need to do, Bryan. I’m doing the best I can right now. I supported you when you struggled. I just really didn’t expect you to go this route.”
Bryan responded, “B.J. needed you tonight, not me. He wanted his mother. I remember how you talked about your dad not always being there when you were growing up. I just wanted you to know B.J. can relate.”
Fear pierced her heart as she watched Bryan walk away. She felt like her marriage was a losing battle. If she wasn’t careful, she would lose her son. Jo was not about to let that happen.
Chapter 16
Thursday, Sept 3 at 9:39 a.m.
Jo and Bryan had not talked anymore after Bryan openly confessed he could not take her growing obsession with another case. For the past two days, Jo’s investigation of Laura Finney’s death had taken a slow dive of no progress, despite the captain’s daily veiled threats. This morning, the weight of Bryan’s words sunk in as Jo realized the case had taken a drastic turn in a direction she could have never seen coming. A little over two weeks after finding Laura Finney’s body, they had another murder scene.
Jo looked down at Sarah’s body. A mixture of shock and fear coursed through her. Sarah was found in her home with her wrists bound behind her. Jo found herself not being able to focus. Her mind raced backwards to the Maddock case. Sarah’s death appeared to almost match Maddock’s m.o.
Is someone playing some sick game here?
Jo glanced at Pete. He looked as grave as she felt. She shifted her eyes to Lou as he walked and recorded notes. Jo held her hand to her head as if it would keep her from losing her mind. What she needed to do was separate all of the other crime scenes in her head and focus solely on this one. Jo tried to recreate the scene inside her head.
Sarah had struggled. She didn’t just let her assailant inside. Jo imagined someone caught the young woman off guard as she entered her house. A scuffle ensued in the hallway. The lamp on the table was knocked over. Sarah’s purse had been flung against a wall. All the items were scattered everywhere. She must have been attacked from behind holding mail in her hand because envelopes and a magazine were strewn across the floor. She had no idea how long Sarah was tied up. The ligatures around her neck indicated strangulation was most likely the cause of death.
Just three days ago, Jo had listened on the phone as the young woman begged them to leave her cousin alone. She provided an alibi for Matt that Jo and Pete had since confirmed with the Uber driver, Sarah’s roommate and the bartender at Nick’s Place. Matt was no longer a suspect, but he was still connected.
Pete looked at Jo and nodded to his right. “Not-so lucky for him having to find her and call it in. Still thinking he’s not involved?”
Jo looked at Pete. “This is someone else. Sarah cleared Matt. She was his alibi. What would have been his motive?”
Jo swung around and looked at Matt who sat on the stairs weeping openly. Jo could not deny she felt bad for him. First, his fiancé and now his cousin. Matt had told them Sarah’s roommate was out-of-town, and was having a hard time getting in touch with Sarah. Matt drove over to the house to check on his cousin.
Jo walked over to Matt and crouched.
Through his tears, Matt moaned. “Sarah always looked out for me.”
Jo sympathized, “I’m so sorry, Matt. Had you and Sarah talked since Monday? Did she mention a man to you? He would’ve been tall with dark hair. Do you know someone who fits that description that would have come to see you Monday?”
Matt shook his head. “What? Nobody came to see me on Monday but Sarah.” He stuttered through tears. “I haven’t talked to Sarah since Monday.”
Jo turned and walked back towards Pete. “Sarah must have found this guy. She got too close to him. He knew she’d made a connection to him and Laura. This was about keeping Sarah quiet.”
Pete smirked, “So we’re still trying to track down the mystery guy we can’t seem to find. The captain is going to want to strangle us.”
Jo thought for a minute. “There was one other person who saw this guy. We need to talk to her and this time she needs to give us something we can use. Sarah was her friend too.”
***
Thursday, September 3 at 4:50 p.m.
When Jo and Pete walked into the Paradise Lounge, there were already several people sitting at the bar enjoying happy hour. Jo spotted Reece shaking a canister behind the bar. They stood at the corner of the bar and waited as Reece finished pouring the drink. Reece’s smile disappeared when she spotted them. Jo walked closer. “Hello, Reece, I’m afraid I have some bad news for you. Can we talk?”
The young woman stopped what she was doing behind the bar and strolled towards Jo and Pete. She crossed her arms.
Jo said, “I’m sorry to have to tell you this, but Sarah was found dead today in her home.”
> Reece stared as if she didn’t quite comprehend Jo’s words. She held her hands to her face and cried. “No, no, no. What? How can this happen?” Reece wiped her wet face. “Sarah was the best. She had such a good heart. I just told her the other day she was pretty and could do anything she wanted.”
Jo stepped closer. “Reece, I’m so sorry. I know Sarah was your friend more so than Laura, but we really need your help. Why don’t we walk over here so you don’t upset your customers?”
Reece shuddered. Her tears spilled down her face making her seem young and vulnerable. “This is probably all Laura’s fault. Right? She’s still messing up people’s lives even though she’s dead.”
Jo noticed Reece’s boss look with concern in their direction. She did a head nod to Pete, directing his attention to the manager. Pete returned her head nod and walked over to the manager, while Jo pulled Reece to the side. “Reece, we need to know more about this guy you saw Laura with.”
Reece whined. “What? Why? That was only one time.”
“Are you sure he hasn’t been in here again?”
Reece took a deep breath and wiped her face with a sleeve, smearing her mascara down her cheeks.
Jo looked around and grabbed napkins from a dispenser off a table. “Here.”
Reece took the napkins. Jo waited as Reece tried to make her face more presentable. “Thanks. Why do you want to find this guy? Did he do this to Sarah?”
“We don’t know yet, but we think Sarah may have had contact with him.”
Reece took a deep sigh. “I’m serving drinks all the time. I know my regulars. I haven’t seen that guy again, although he could have been here before. So you think he killed Sarah and Laura? Why Sarah?”
“I don’t know, but he’s the only lead we have now, Reece. Sarah thought she saw him recently, but that he looked different. He could be someone you’ve seen before, but maybe something about him looked different so you didn’t really recognize him.”